Although SMI does not typically take "institutional" positions, the research of SMI analysts tends to converge in support of
small government principles that maximize both
economic efficiency in the Missouri economy and
individual freedom for Missourians.
Taxation SMI research supports low broad-based taxes and a move away from
income taxes as keys to economic growth in Missouri. The first paper published by the institute, written by
Joseph Haslag in 2006, explored how the 1 percent earnings taxes of Kansas City and St. Louis damaged growth in those cities. An essay published in 2012 by Patrick Ishmael and Michael Rathbone called for the elimination of the
corporate income tax through the elimination of
economic development tax incentives. In 2019, Patrick Tuohey and Graham Renz explored
tax increment financing,
community improvement district and other local taxing districts, finding that the districts could often be formed with little public input and that many districts lacked sufficient oversight of the revenues collected.
Spending Research by Ishmael and Adam Millsap, published in 2017, explored the relationship between state & local government spending growth and
private sector gross state product (GSP) growth. The paper raised concerns about the compounding effects of
deadweight losses caused by state governments driving larger and larger portions of their GSP, observing that "[in] a state where government expenditures grow faster than the private sector economy as a whole, the amount of resources the government controls increases over time." The paper included the author-named "IM Index" ranking of states from 2004 to 2013, which compared states based on their overall exposure to these spending and deadweight loss risks.
Health care The institute is skeptical of
socialized medicine and has criticized the
Affordable Care Act. Researchers have written in support of block-granting
Medicaid and proposals that would financially incentivize non-
long term care beneficiaries to shop for services and voluntarily leave the program. The institute has also written against
certificate of need laws and in support of
health savings accounts,
direct primary care,
licensure reform and insurance market
deregulation.
Government transparency Researchers have supported the expanded use of digital recording, including video and
online streaming, of government hearings, including the allowance of outside recording devices when government organs decline to record proceedings themselves. Researchers have also advocated for greater local government transparency, particularly for spending records of
municipal,
county, and
special taxing districts.
Education Researchers have supported a variety of
school choice initiatives, including education savings accounts, support for
charter schools, and greater flexibility in
merit pay for high performing teachers. Researchers also introduced a "Missouri Parents' Bill of Rights," with a focus on curricular and spending transparency.
Workforce development and labor policies SMI researchers have supported the expansion of
apprenticeship programs and a diversification of the state's educational portfolio to better fund
blue collar career tracks. Institute researchers view
government labor unions as inherently problematic.
Housing The institute opposes laws that ban
source of income discrimination for tenants, asserting that such laws are "authoritarian" and infringe upon the property rights of landlords. ==Board of directors==